afforestation

noun

af·​for·​es·​ta·​tion (ˌ)a-ˌfȯr-ə-ˈstā-shən 

ə-,

-ˌfär-

: the act or process of establishing a forest especially on land not previously forested

afforest

a-ˈfȯr-əst 

-ˈfär-

transitive verb

Examples of afforestation in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The farm lobby has long been a vocal critic of the aggressive afforestation policy, calling it a threat to the beef, dairy, wool and sheepmeat that make up about 46% of the nation’s annual exports. —Tribune News Service, Hartford Courant, 28 May 2024

To this end, there are global efforts to map potential areas for afforestation initiatives, but these efforts often identify grassland ecosystems as good candidates for afforestation, threatening more than one million square kilometers of grasslands in Africa, for example. —Sutirtha Lahiri, Scientific American, 3 Mar. 2023

Ancolie Stoll tends to one such space called Nilatangam, a 7.5-hectare afforestation project started by her European parents when Auroville was first set up. —Mahima Jain, WIRED, 18 Mar. 2023

Over decades, a motley crew of foresters, ecologists, and conservationists worked on afforestation, soil restoration, and water conservation projects within Auroville. —Mahima Jain, WIRED, 18 Mar. 2023

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Medieval Latin afforestātiōn-, afforestātiō, from afforestāre "to convert into a forest" (from Latin ad- ad- + verbal derivative of Late Latin forestis "unenclosed woodland, forest entry 1") + Latin -tiōn-, -tiō, suffix of action nouns

First Known Use

1598, in the meaning defined above